Utility vehicle

ABSTRACT

A vehicle includes a plurality of ground-engaging members, a frame assembly supported by the plurality of ground-engaging members, and a seating area supported by the frame assembly and configured to support at least an operator and a passenger. The vehicle also includes a cargo area positioned rearward of the seating area and including a floor configured to support cargo thereon. Additionally, the vehicle includes a powertrain assembly including an engine and a transmission operably coupled to at least one of the plurality of ground-engaging members. A heat exchanger is fluidly coupled to the engine. The heat exchanger is angled relative to the floor of the cargo area and positioned along a lateral side of the cargo area.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application is a continuation of U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 15/888,443, filed Feb. 5, 2018, and entitled “UTILITY VEHICLE,”which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/965,226,filed Dec. 10, 2015, and entitled “UTILITY VEHICLE” (Attorney Docket No.PLR-09-27113.01P), now patented as U.S. Pat. No. 9,884,647, the completedisclosures of which are expressly incorporated by reference herein.

BACKGROUND OF THE DISCLOSURE

The present disclosure relates to vehicles, and more particularly toside-by-side utility and all-terrain vehicles.

Generally, all-terrain vehicles (“ATVs”) and utility vehicles (“UVs”)are used to carry one or more passengers and cargo over a variety ofterrain. Some ATVs and UVs may include side-by-side seating, in which apassenger may be seated next to the driver at the front of the vehicle.Side-by-side vehicles also may include a rear seating area toaccommodate additional passengers in the vehicle. An upper frameassembly may be provided over the seating area(s) of the vehicle.Additionally, ATVs and UVs may provide a cargo area in the front and/orthe rear of the vehicle to carry cargo.

SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSURE

An illustrative embodiment of the present disclosure includes a vehiclecomprising a frame assembly extending along a longitudinal axis of thevehicle and including a rear frame portion. The rear frame portionincludes at least one upstanding member, at least one longitudinalmember, and at least one coupling member coupled to the at least oneupstanding member and the at least one longitudinal member. The vehiclealso comprises at least one front ground-engaging member supporting theframe assembly, at least one rear ground-engaging member supporting theframe assembly, a drivetrain assembly operably coupled to the front andrear ground-engaging member, and a rear suspension assembly. The rearsuspension assembly includes at least one radius rod operably coupled tothe at least one rear ground-engaging member and angled less than 90°relative to the at least one longitudinal member.

Another illustrative embodiment of the present disclosure includes avehicle comprising a frame assembly extending along a longitudinal axisof the vehicle and including a rear frame portion. The rear frameportion includes at least a first member, a second member, and acoupling member coupled to the first and second members. The vehiclealso comprises at least one front ground-engaging member supporting theframe assembly, at least one rear ground-engaging member supporting theframe assembly, a drivetrain assembly operably coupled to the front andrear ground-engaging members, and a rear suspension assembly. The rearsuspension assembly includes at least one radius rod pivotably coupledto the coupling member and configured to pivot in a vertical planerearward of the coupling member.

A further illustrative embodiment of the present disclosure includes aframe assembly for a vehicle comprising a first member, a second member,and a coupling member including a first portion coupled to the firstmember, a second portion coupled to the second member, and a thirdportion configured to couple with a rear suspension assembly of thevehicle.

Additional features and advantages of the present invention will becomeapparent to those skilled in the art upon consideration of the followingdetailed description of the illustrative embodiment exemplifying thebest mode of carrying out the invention as presently perceived.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The foregoing aspects and many of the intended advantages of thisinvention will become more readily appreciated as the same becomesbetter understood by reference to the following detailed descriptionwhen taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is a left front perspective view of an illustrative vehicle ofthe present disclosure;

FIG. 2 is a right rear perspective view of the vehicle of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a left side view of the vehicle of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a right side view of the vehicle of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a top view of the vehicle of FIG. 1;

FIG. 6 is a front view of the vehicle of FIG. 1;

FIG. 7 is a rear view of the vehicle of FIG. 1;

FIG. 8 is a left front perspective view of an upper frame assembly ofthe vehicle of FIG. 1;

FIG. 9 is a left front perspective view of a front portion of the upperframe assembly of FIG. 8;

FIG. 10 is an exploded view of a pivot member of the front portion ofFIG. 9;

FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view of the pivot member of FIG. 10, takenalong line 11-11 of FIG. 9;

FIG. 12 is a further cross-sectional view of the pivot member of FIG.10, taken along line 12-12 of FIG. 9;

FIG. 13 is a left front perspective view of the front portion of theupper frame assembly and the pivot member of FIG. 9 with the pivotmember positioned in a released configuration;

FIG. 14 is a cross-sectional view of the pivot member of FIG. 13, takenalong line 14-14 of FIG. 13;

FIG. 15 is a right front perspective view of a cargo area of the vehicleof FIG. 1, including an air intake assembly;

FIG. 16 is an exploded view of the air intake assembly of FIG. 15;

FIG. 17 is a left side view of a rear portion of the vehicle of FIG. 1,illustrating the air intake assembly of FIG. 15 and a portion of apowertrain assembly of the vehicle of FIG. 1;

FIG. 18 is a left side view of the air intake assembly and powertrainassembly of FIG. 17;

FIG. 19 is a left rear perspective view of an underside of the airintake assembly of FIG. 15;

FIG. 20 is a front view of the air intake assembly and powertrainassembly of FIG. 18;

FIG. 21 is a left rear perspective view of a rear suspension assembly ofthe vehicle of FIG. 1;

FIG. 22 is a left front perspective view of the rear suspension assemblyof FIG. 21;

FIG. 23 is a top view of the rear suspension assembly of FIG. 22;

FIG. 24 is a left side view of the rear suspension assembly of FIG. 23;

FIG. 25 is an exploded view of a portion of the rear suspension assemblyof FIG. 21 and a rear frame portion of the vehicle of FIG. 1; and

FIG. 26 is an exploded view of a frame coupler of the rear frame portionof FIG. 25.

Corresponding reference characters indicate corresponding partsthroughout the several views. Although the drawings representembodiments of various features and components according to the presentdisclosure, the drawings are not necessarily to scale and certainfeatures may be exaggerated in order to better illustrate and explainthe present disclosure. The exemplifications set out herein illustrateembodiments of the invention, and such exemplifications are not to beconstrued as limiting the scope of the invention in any manner.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The embodiments disclosed below are not intended to be exhaustive or tolimit the invention to the precise forms disclosed in the followingdetailed description. Rather, the embodiments are chosen and describedso that others skilled in the art may utilize their teachings. While thepresent disclosure is primarily directed to a utility vehicle, it shouldbe understood that the features disclosed herein may have application toother types of vehicles such as all-terrain vehicles, motorcycles,watercraft, snowmobiles, and golf carts.

Referring to FIGS. 1-7, an illustrative embodiment of a vehicle 2includes front ground-engaging members 4, rear ground-engaging members6, a lower frame assembly 8, an upper frame assembly 10, a powertrainassembly 12, a cargo area 14, a front suspension assembly 16, and a rearsuspension assembly 18. Front and rear ground-engaging members 4, 6 maybe wheels with tires or, alternatively, may be tracks, such as thePROSPECTOR II tracks available from Polaris Industries, Inc. located at2100 Highway 55 in Medina, Minn. 55340.

Vehicle 2 may be referred to as a utility vehicle (“UV”), an all-terrainvehicle (“ATV”), or a side-by-side vehicle (“SxS”) and is configured fortravel over various terrains or surfaces. More particularly, vehicle 2may be configured for military applications. Vehicle 2 includes anoperator area 20 which includes side-by-side front seats 22 and also mayinclude side-by-side rear seats 24. Seats 22, 24 are positioned forwardof cargo area 14, which is configured to support any type of cargothereon. Illustratively, cargo area 14 is positioned above powertrainassembly 12, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4. Powertrain assembly 12 includesat least an engine 146 (FIG. 4), a transmission, illustratively acontinuously variable transmission (“CVT”) 148 (FIG. 3), front and reardifferentials (not shown), and a drive shaft (not shown). In oneembodiment, powertrain assembly 12 also includes a turbocharger 149(FIG. 18) operably coupled to engine 146. Engine 146 may be configuredto operate with gasoline, natural gas, or other sources of fuel,however, illustrative engine 146 operates with diesel fuel.

Referring to FIGS. 1-14, upper frame assembly 10 is shown. Upper frameassembly 10 is coupled to lower frame assembly 8 and extends upwardlytherefrom. In particular, upper frame assembly 10 generally extends overoperator area 20 and includes a front portion 26 generally positionedabove front seats 22 and a rear portion 28 generally positioned aboverear seats 24. Illustratively, upper frame assembly 10 extendslongitudinally along a longitudinal axis L (FIG. 5) of vehicle 2 and ispositioned generally intermediate cargo area 14 and frontground-engaging members 4.

Upper frame assembly 10 is configured rotate between an uprightposition, as shown in FIG. 8, and a lowered position (not shown). Moreparticularly, upper frame member 10 may be rotated to the loweredposition during transport of vehicle 2. For example, if vehicle 2 istransported on an aircraft carrier, a watercraft, a cargo aircraft, atruck, or a trailer, upper frame member 10 may be rotated to the loweredposition such that front and rear portions 26, 28 may rotate towards ahood of vehicle 2 to decrease the overall height of vehicle 2 duringtransport. Alternatively, front and rear portions 26, 28 may rotaterearwardly toward cargo area 14. In one embodiment, the height ofvehicle 2 when upper frame assembly 10 is in the lowered position may beless than 60 inches. Additional information about the upright andlowered positions of upper frame assembly 10 is disclosed herein and inU.S. Pat. No. 8,998,253, issued on Apr. 7, 2015 (Attorney Docket No.PLR-09-25274.02P), the complete disclosure of which is expresslyincorporated by reference herein.

As shown in FIGS. 8-14, front portion 26 of upper frame assembly 10includes upstanding members 30 and longitudinally-extending members 32.Upstanding members 30 may be coupled together through a frontcross-member 34 and longitudinally-extending members 32 may be coupledtogether by at least one brace 36 and a rear cross-member 38.

As shown in FIG. 8, longitudinally-extending members 32 may be coupledto an intermediate member 40 having at least one brace 42 and an uppercross-member 43. Additionally, longitudinally-extending members 32 arecoupled to rear portion 28 of upper frame assembly 10 through rearcross-member 38. As shown in FIG. 8, rear portion 28 includes upstandingmembers 44 and longitudinally-extending members 46. In one embodiment,upstanding members 44 are coupled together with a cross-member 48 andlongitudinally-extending members 46 are coupled together by at least onebrace 49. The forward extents of longitudinally-extending members 46 arepivotably coupled to rear cross-member 38 through pivot couplers 89 andthe rearward extents of longitudinally-extending members 46 includelatch assemblies 88 for coupling to a cross-member 39 of cargo area 14,as shown in FIG. 2. Also, the rearward extent oflongitudinally-extending members 32 of front portion 26 includes latchassemblies 88 for coupling to upper cross-member 43 of intermediatemember 40. Additional details of latch assemblies 88, pivot couplers 89,and upper frame assembly 10 may be disclosed further in U.S. Pat. No.8,998,253, issued on Apr. 7, 2015 (Attorney Docket No.PLR-09-25274.02P), the complete disclosure of which is expresslyincorporated by reference herein.

Referring to FIGS. 8-14, each upstanding member 30 of front portion 26has a lower end defined by couplers 50 which are configured to couplewith lower frame assembly 8. Additionally, an upper end of eachupstanding member 30 is coupled to longitudinally-extending members 32with pivot members 52.

As shown in FIGS. 8-14, pivot members 52 are coupled to forward ends oflongitudinally-extending members 32 and to lateral posts 54 ofupstanding members 30. Posts 54 cantilever or otherwise extend fromupstanding members 30 such that posts 54 are not coupled to each other.As such, front portion 26 of upper frame assembly 10 does not include across-member positioned between pivot members 52 which increases theoperator's line of sight when operating vehicle 2. Illustratively, posts54 also may be received within a portion of upstanding members 30 andwelded, threaded, or otherwise coupled to upstanding member 30, as shownin FIG. 12. Alternatively, posts 54 may be integrally formed withupstanding members 30.

Referring still to FIGS. 8-14, pivot members 52 include a first portion52 a and a second portion 52 b. Illustratively, second portion 52 b iscoupled to longitudinally-extending members 32 and, in one embodiment,second portion 52 b is integrally formed with the forward ends oflongitudinally-extending members 32. First and second portions 52 a, 52b are positioned on post 54 intermediate flanges 56 of post 54 andbushings 59 are positioned between post 54 and first and second portions52 a, 52 b. Flanges 56 maintain the lateral position of pivot member 52on post 54 and bushings 59 allow pivot member 52 to rotate about post 54when moving upper frame assembly 10 between the upright and loweredpositions, as disclosed further herein. First and second portions 52 a,52 b are removably coupled together with at least one fastener 58 aboutposts 54 of upstanding members 30.

As shown in FIGS. 10 and 11, each pivot member 52 also includes a pinassembly 60 to maintain the position of upper frame assembly 10, asdisclosed further herein. Pin assembly 60 includes a pin plunger 62, atension member, illustratively a spring 64, a housing 66, an outer cover68, and a lever 69. In one embodiment, housing 66 has an angled surface82 configured to contact an angled surface 84 of outer cover 68. Pinplunger 62 includes a rearward portion 70 which is received within arecess 72 of first portion 52 a of pivot member 52 and within a recess80 of post 54. Additionally, pin plunger 62 includes a forward portion74 which includes an aperture 76. Forward portion 74 of pin plunger 62is received within spring 64, housing 66, and outer cover 68 to receivean upper portion of lever 69 through aperture 76. More particularly,outer cover 68 includes an aperture 78 and lever 69 extends intoapertures 76, 78 to couple together pin plunger 62, housing 66, andouter cover 68.

Because of spring 64, pin assembly 60 biases pin plunger 62 withinrecess 80 of post 54 such that upper frame assembly 10 is maintained inthe upright position (FIG. 1-8). More particularly, by positioning atleast a portion of rearward portion 70 of pin plunger 62 within recess80 of post 54, pin plunger 62 prevents rotation of pivot member 52 aboutpost 54 to maintain upper frame assembly 10 in the upright position.However, when it is desired to move upper frame assembly 10 to thelowered position, for example during transport of vehicle 2, lever 69may be pulled in the forward direction or rotated approximately 180° tothe released position shown in FIGS. 13 and 14, which pulls pin plunger62 and outer cover 68 in the forward direction to move rearward portion70 of pin plunger 62 out of recess 80 of post 54. More particularly,when moving to the released position, outer cover 68 and lever 69 may berotated 180° relative to housing 66 such that angled surfaces 82, 84 areangled away from each other, rather than abutting each other when pinassembly 60 in the locked position shown in FIGS. 8-11. When pin plunger62 is rotated 180°, angled surfaces 82, 84 rotate against each otheruntil lever 69 extends upwardly. This rotation causes spring 64 tocompress within housing 66 and rearward portion 70 of pin plunger 62moves forwardly within housing 66. By moving rearward portion 70 of pinplunger 62 out of recess 80 of post 54, pivot member 52 can rotate aboutpost 54 to move upper frame assembly 10 in a counter-clockwise directionto the lowered position, as shown in FIG. 14.

In operation, when moving upper frame assembly 10 to the loweredposition, latch assemblies 88 on upstanding members 44 are released fromcross-member 39 (FIG. 2) of cargo area 14 and latch assemblies 88 onlongitudinally-extending members 32 are released from upper cross-member43. Rear portion 28 of upper frame assembly 10 then rotates, via pivotcouplers 89, in a clockwise direction about rear cross-member 38 toextend along an underside of front portion 26. In one embodiment, pivotcouplers 89 may be replaced with pivot members 52 which include pinassembly 60. When pin assemblies 60 are actuated to release pin plunger62 from post 54 (e.g., when lever 69 is rotated 180° such that pinplunger 62 and outer cover 68 move in a forward direction to compressspring 64), front and rear portions 26, 28 then rotate together in acounter-clockwise direction to allow front and rear portions 26, 28 torotate forward of operator area 20 and rest on the hood of vehicle 2. Bymoving front and rear portions 26, 28 of upper frame assembly 10 to thelowered position on the hood of vehicle 2, the overall height of vehicle2 is reduced to facilitate transportation of vehicle 2. It may beappreciated that tools are not required to actuate pin assemblies 60and/or move upper frame assembly 10 between the upright and loweredpositions. Additional details of the operation of upper frame assembly10 may be disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 8,998,253, issued on Apr. 7, 2015(Attorney Docket No. PLR-09-25274.02P), the complete disclosure of whichis expressly incorporated by reference herein. Additionally, upper frameassembly 10 may include only front portion 26 if vehicle 2 includes onlyfront seats 22, as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 8,998,253, issued on Apr.7, 2015 (Attorney Docket No. PLR-09-25274.02P), the complete disclosureof which is expressly incorporated by reference herein.

In one embodiment, lever 69 is configured to extend upwardly from outercover 68 when in the locked position to extend away from the operator'sline of sight. Alternatively, pin assembly 60 may be positioned anywherealong the circumference of pivot member 52 depending on the operator'spreference for line of sight and operating pin assembly 60.

Referring to FIGS. 15-20, cargo area 14 is generally positioned rearwardof upper frame assembly 10 and operator area 20. Cargo area 14 includeslateral frame members 90 which are coupled to cross-member 39.Additionally, cargo area 14 includes a floor 92, side walls 94 (FIG. 3),and a tail gate 96 which is configured to pivot about point 98 (FIG. 3)and is moved between a lowered position and an upright position (FIG.15) by a latch assembly 99 (FIG. 15). Cargo area 14 is configured tosupport cargo, passengers, and any other item on vehicle 2.

Additionally, and referring to FIG. 16, cargo area 14 supports an airintake assembly 100 for vehicle 2. As shown, air intake assembly 100 ispositioned along a side of cargo area 14, illustratively the left side,such that the center portion and right side of cargo area 14 remainsavailable for supporting cargo, passengers, and/or other items (e.g.,stretchers or gurneys). Additionally, at this position, air intakeassembly 100 is positioned adjacent powertrain assembly 12, rather thanat the front portion of vehicle 2, which decreases the length of hosesor conduits required to supply air to portions of powertrain assembly12, as disclosed further herein.

Air intake assembly 100 is positioned within a housing 102 which iscoupled to left side wall 94. Housing 102 includes a forward vent 104,an upper vent 106, and a rearward vent 108, as disclosed further herein.More particularly, housing 102 includes an inner member 110 coupled toleft side wall 94 through brackets 112 which abut tabs 114 of left sidewall 94. Inner member 110 of housing 102 includes rearward vent 108.Additionally, housing 102 includes an upper member 116 which includesforward vent 104 and upper vent 106. Upper member 116 is coupled to leftside wall 94 with brackets 118 which abut upper apertures 120 of leftside wall 94.

Referring still to FIG. 16, air intake assembly 100 includes a heatexchanger 122, such as an air-to-air intercooler, a charge air cooler,or a liquid-to-air intercooler, and at least one fan 124.Illustratively, air intake assembly 100 includes two fans 124, however,air intake assembly 100 may have any number of fans 124 to accommodatethe intake air and/or cooling air required for powertrain assembly 12.Heat exchanger 122 is coupled to inner member 110 of housing 102 with abracket 126 which is removably coupled to tabs 128 on heat exchanger 122with fasteners (not shown) and to fasteners 130 on inner member 110 ofhousing 102. Additionally, heat exchanger 122 includes brackets 132which couple to a support member 134 for coupling to left side wall 94of cargo area 14. Support member 134 and brackets 132 also couple with aframe member 136 for fans 124.

As shown in FIG. 16, air intake assembly 100 also includes a baffle 138which includes a partition or wall 140 to divide baffle 138 into two ormore air channels 142, 144. Illustratively, baffle 138 is positionedwithin housing 102 and is forward of heat exchanger 122 and fans 124, asshown in FIG. 18.

As shown in FIGS. 17-20, air intake assembly 100 is positioned generallyabove powertrain assembly 12 to provide intake air and/or cooling air toportions of powertrain assembly 12. Additionally, the aerodynamics ofvehicle 2 create a low-pressure zone in cargo area 14 such that airintake assembly 100 is positioned within this low-pressure area toincrease air flow to air intake assembly 100.

Air intake assembly 100 is fluidly coupled to CVT 148 to provide coolingair thereto and is fluidly coupled to turbocharger 149 to provide airthereto for cooling and/or combustion within engine 146 (FIG. 4). Moreparticularly, air intake assembly 100 is configured to providecombustion air to engine 146 through turbocharger 149 and is configuredfor cooling at low speed and high-load operation of vehicle 2. Airintake assembly 100 includes a clutch intake conduit 150 extendingbetween first air channel 142 and CVT 148 to provide cooling air to CVT148. Air enters housing 102 through forward vent 104 and a portion ofthe air flowing through forward vent 104 flows into first air channel142 of baffle 138 to provide ambient air to CVT 148. Air intake assembly100 also includes a turbocharger intake conduit 152 (FIG. 19) extendingbetween second air channel 144 and turbocharger 149 to provide ambientair to turbocharger 149 for combustion within engine 146 (FIG. 4). Airenters housing 102 through forward vent 104 and a portion of the airflowing through forward vent 104 flows into second air channel 144 ofbaffle 138 to provide air to turbocharger 149. The air from turbocharger149 flows into a combustion chamber (not shown) of engine 146 through aconduit 153 (FIG. 18). Before the air within turbocharger conduit 152enters turbocharger 149 and/or engine 146, the air may flow through afilter to remove particulate matter, debris, etc. therefrom.Additionally, turbocharger 149 may receive exhaust gases from engine146. It may be appreciated that wall 140 of baffle 138 separates the airinto two distinct flow paths for conduits 150, 152 such that airdirected to CVT 148 through first air channel 142 is not scavenged fromthe air directed to turbocharger 149 through second air channel 144 orvice versa.

Air intake assembly 100 also includes an intake conduit 154 and anoutlet conduit 156 for heat exchanger 122. Intake conduit 154 isconfigured to receive cooling fluid (e.g., oil, coolant, air, etc.) fromturbocharger 149 which flows through heat exchanger 122 to decrease thetemperature of the cooling fluid. More particularly, ambient air entershousing 102 through vents 104, 106 which is pulled through heatexchanger 122 by fans 124. As the cooler ambient air flows through heatexchanger 122, the temperature of the cooling fluid from engine 146decreases and is recirculated to engine 146 through outlet conduit 156for continued cooling of at least engine 146. Alternatively, in oneembodiment, heat exchanger 122 may be configured to decrease thetemperature of the air entering the combustion chamber of engine 146from turbocharger 149 to increase the air density into the combustionchamber to allow more fuel to be injected therein, resulting in greaterpower output.

To increase the ambient air flow through heat exchanger 122, heatexchanger 122 and fans 124 are angled relative to floor 92 (FIG. 15) ofcargo area 14 to increase the air flow through both forward vent 104 andupper vent 106. In one embodiment, heat exchanger 122 and fans 124 areangled 5-15°, and more particularly 10°, relative to floor 92.Alternatively, heat exchanger 122 may be angled more or less than fans124 relative to floor 92. Additionally, in one embodiment, one of fans124 has a different angle relative to floor 92 than the angle of theother fan 124. Due to the angle of fans 124 and positioning heatexchanger 122 in a low-pressure area of vehicle 2, the quantity of airflowing through heat exchanger 122 may be increased because the lowpressure draft behind vehicle 2 “pulls” air rearwardly toward heatexchanger 122. Additionally, the angle of fans 124 allows the airexiting heat exchanger 122 to flow rearwardly out of vehicle 2 throughrearward vent 108. As such, the hotter air from heat exchanger 122 isdirected away from powertrain assembly 12 and other components ofvehicle 2 by flowing rearwardly through vent 108 to prevent inadvertentheating of such components.

Referring to FIGS. 21-26, rear suspension assembly 18 generallysurrounds a portion of powertrain assembly 12. More particularly, rearsuspension assembly 18 is positioned rearward and laterally outward ofengine 146 and CVT 148. Illustratively, rear suspension assembly 18includes trailing arms 160 operably coupled to a rear portion 168 oflower frame assembly 8 and a hub assembly 162 of rear ground-engagingmembers 6. Additionally, rear suspension assembly 18 also includes upperradius rods 164 and lower radius rods 166. Radius rods 164, 166 also areoperably coupled to hub assembly 162 and lower frame assembly 8. Asshown in FIG. 21, radius rods 164 include a first or center portion 164a, a second or outer portion 164 b, and a third or inner portion 164 c.Similarly, radius rods 166 include a first or center portion 166 a, asecond or outer portion 166, and a third or inner portion 166 c.Portions 164 a, 164 b, 164 c are coupled together, for example bywelding. Similarly, portions 166 a, 166 b, 166 c are coupled together,for example by welding. Portions 164 a, 164 b, 164 c, 166 a, 166 b, 166c all may have the same length or may have different lengths toaccommodate various geometries of rear suspension assembly 18 and/orsizes of vehicle 2. Additionally, portions 164 a, 164 b, 164 c, 166 a,166 b, 166 c all may have the same diameter or may have differentdiameters such that portions 164 b, 164 c have a smaller diameter thanportion 164 a and/or portions 166 b, 166 c have a smaller diameter thanportion 166 a.

In one embodiment, bearings 186, 194 of radius rods 164, 166,respectively, may be comprised of a high-strength material which isforged and requires minimal machining. Similarly, the outer bearings ofradius rods 164, 166 which are coupled to hub assembly 162 also may becomprised of high-strength material which is forged and requires minimalmachining. Bearings 186, 196 may be coupled to third portions 164 c, 166c, respectively, in any known manner (e.g., welding).

As compared to conventional radius rods which may be comprised of asolid diameter steel rod, the three-piece configuration of radius rods164, 166 includes forged or machined ends to accommodate a sphericaljoint, which may decrease the weight and cost of radius rods 164, 166.For example, the weight of radius rods 164, 166 may be reduced by up to50% compared to conventional radius rods while maintaining the bucklingand bending strength of a conventional radius rod.

As shown in FIG. 23, radius rods 164, 166 are angled forwardly such thatthe outer extents of radius rods 164, 166 are positioned forward of theinner extents thereof. In other words, second portions 164 b, 166 b arepositioned forward of third portions 164 c, 166 c. As such, radius rods164, 166 angle forwardly and away from the half shafts (not shown) whichextend into hub assemblies 162 from the rear differential (not shown).In this way, radius rods 164, 166 are configured to pivot a maximumdistance during operation of vehicle 2 without interference from thehalf shafts or a component of lower frame assembly 8. Additional detailsof rear suspension assembly 18 may be disclosed in U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 14/051,700, filed on Oct. 11, 2013 (Attorney DocketNo. PLR-15-25448.04P), the complete disclosure of which is expresslyincorporated by reference herein.

Illustratively, rear portion 168 of lower frame assembly 8 includesupstanding members 170, longitudinally-extending members 172, a supportplate 174, a rear brace 176, and a frame coupler 178. Support plate 174may be configured to support a portion of powertrain assembly 12, suchas a rear differential (not shown), and may be coupled to frame coupler178 and/or longitudinally-extending members 172.

Additionally, brace 176 extends between upstanding members 170 and iscoupled thereto with welds, adhesive, rivets, bolts, or mechanicalfasteners. Upper radius rods 164 are coupled to brace 176 with fasteners180, 182 which are received through an aperture 184 in brace 176 andthrough bearing 186 of upper radius rod 164. Illustratively, upperradius rods 164 are removably coupled to brace 176 forward of upstandingmembers 170 and forward of a portion of frame coupler 178. Bypositioning upper radius rods 164 forward of a portion of frame coupler178 and upstanding members 170, upper radius rods 164 are configured topivot in a vertical plane (not shown) a maximum distance duringoperation of vehicle 2 without any interference from lower frameassembly 8.

Lower radius rods 166 are removably coupled to frame coupler 178 withfasteners 188, 190 which are received through an aperture 192 in framecoupler 178 and bearing 194 of lower radius rod 166. More particularly,bearing 194 is coupled to a rearward extent or surface 208 of framecoupler 178. Additionally, a mounting plate 196 is coupled to bearing194 and lower frame assembly 8 with fasteners 188, 190. As shown in FIG.25, bearing 194 is positioned intermediate rearward extent 208 of framecoupler 178 and mounting plate 196. By positioning lower radius rods 166rearward of frame coupler 178, upstanding members 170, andlongitudinally-extending members 172, lower radius rods 166 areconfigured to pivot a maximum distance in a vertical plane (not shown)rearward of frame coupler 178 during operation of vehicle 2 without anyinterference from lower frame assembly 8.

In addition to supporting lower radius rods 166, frame coupler 178 alsocouples together upstanding members 170 and longitudinally-extendingmembers 172 of lower frame assembly 8. More particularly,longitudinally-extending members 172 and upstanding members 170 are bothcoupled to frame coupler 178 which defines a rear corner of rear portion168 of lower frame assembly 8. Additionally, frame coupler 178 mayinclude apertures 210 (FIG. 25) for receiving fasteners (not shown) tocouple with additional components of rear portion 168 of lower frameassembly 8. As such, frame coupler 178 couples together separate framecomponents (e.g., upstanding members 170 and longitudinally-extendingmembers 172) and a portion of rear suspension assembly 18 (e.g., lowerradius rods 166).

In one embodiment, frame coupler 178 may be a singular cast componentwith an upper portion 198 and a lower portion 200. Upper portion 198 hasa semi-circular recess 202 truncated by a ledge 204 which receives thelower ends of upstanding members 170. In one embodiment, upper portion198 extends in a generally vertical direction. The lower ends ofupstanding members 170 are retained within recesses 202 with adhesive,welds, mechanical fasteners, or any other manner of coupling upstandingmembers 170 to frame coupler 178. As such, upstanding members 170 may befixed or permanently coupled to frame coupler 178.

Lower portion 200 of frame coupler 178 includes a protrusion 206extending generally longitudinally and configured to be received withinan open rearward end of longitudinally-extending members 172. Therearward ends of longitudinally-extending members 172 are retained onprotrusions 206 with adhesive, welds, mechanical fasteners, or any othercoupling members. As such, longitudinally-extending members 172 may befixed or permanently coupled to frame coupler 178, however, lower radiusrods 166 are removably coupled to frame coupler 178. In this way, framecoupler 178 may be a single component in which upper portion 198, lowerportion 200, and rearward extent 208 are integral with each other thatis configured to couple with a plurality of components of vehicle 2,such as upstanding members 170, longitudinally-extending members 172,lower radius rods 166, and support plate 174.

Additionally, in the illustrative embodiment of vehicle 2, frame coupler178 is configured to couple with upstanding members 170 and withlongitudinally-extending members 172 which are angled relative to eachother. For example, longitudinally-extending members 172 are angled awayfrom longitudinal axis L (FIG. 5) and toward trailing arms 160 andupstanding members 170 are angled away from a vertical axis (not shown)intersecting longitudinal axis L. Additionally, frame coupler 178 isconfigured to couple with lower radius rods 166 which are angledrelative to upstanding members 170 and longitudinally-extending members172. For example, as shown in FIG. 23, radius rods 164, 166 are angledrelative to longitudinally-extending members 172 by an angle α, which,illustratively, may be less than 90°. Additionally, as shown in FIG. 22,upstanding members 170 is angled relative to longitudinally-extendingmembers 172 by an angle ψ, which, illustratively, may be approximately75-115°, for example approximately 90°. Also, as shown in FIG. 21,upstanding members 170 are angled relative to lower radius rods 166 byan angle β, which, illustratively, may be 75-115°, and, in one example,75-90°. As such, frame coupler 178 is a single component configured tocouple with various components of vehicle 2 at a plurality of anglesrelative to each other.

While this invention has been described as having an exemplary design,the present invention may be further modified within the spirit andscope of this disclosure. This application is therefore intended tocover any variations, uses, or adaptations of the invention using itsgeneral principles. Further, this application is intended to cover suchdepartures from the present disclosure as come within known or customarypractice in the art to which this invention pertains.

What is claimed is:
 1. A vehicle, comprising: a plurality ofground-engaging members; a frame assembly supported by the plurality ofground-engaging members; a seating area supported by the frame assemblyand configured to support at least an operator and a passenger; a cargoarea positioned rearward of the seating area and including a floorconfigured to support cargo thereon; a powertrain assembly including anengine and a transmission operably coupled to at least one of theplurality of ground-engaging members; and a heat exchanger fluidlycoupled to the engine, the heat exchanger being angled relative to thefloor of the cargo area and extending along a lateral side of the cargoarea.
 2. The vehicle of claim 1, further comprising a housing removablycoupled to a portion of the cargo area and configured to support theheat exchanger therein; and at least one fan fluidly coupled to the heatexchanger.
 3. The vehicle of claim 2, wherein the at least one fanincludes a first fan and a second fan, and both the first and secondfans are angled relative to the floor of the cargo area.
 4. The vehicleof claim 3, wherein the first fan is angled relative to the second fan.5. The vehicle of claim 1, further comprising an air intake assemblyhaving a first air intake fluidly coupled to the engine and a second airintake fluidly coupled to the transmission, and both the first andsecond air intakes are positioned along a side of the cargo area.
 6. Thevehicle of claim 5, wherein at least a portion of the air intakeassembly is positioned laterally outward of the seating area.
 7. Thevehicle of claim 5, wherein the air intake assembly is configured tovent air rearwardly from the vehicle.
 8. The vehicle of claim 7, furthercomprising a housing removably coupled to a portion of the cargo areaand configured to include the first air intake, the second air intake,and the heat exchanger, and the housing includes a first vent positionedat a forward portion of the housing and a second vent positioned at arearward portion of the vehicle, and the second vent is configured toexpel air rearwardly from the vehicle.
 9. The vehicle of claim 8,wherein the housing further includes a third vent positionedlongitudinally intermediate the first and second vents, and the firstvent is configured to provide air to the engine and the transmission andthe third vent is configured to provide air to the heat exchanger. 10.The vehicle of claim 1, wherein the heat exchanger extends along thelateral side of the cargo area and is positioned at the lateral side ofthe cargo area.
 11. The vehicle of claim 1, wherein the heat exchangeris positioned at least partially in the cargo area.
 12. The vehicle ofclaim 1, wherein the heat exchanger is coupled to the lateral side ofthe cargo area.
 13. A vehicle, comprising: a plurality ofground-engaging members including at least one front ground-engagingmember and at least one rear ground-engaging member; a frame assemblysupported by the plurality of ground-engaging members and extendingbetween a forward frame portion and a rearward frame portion along alongitudinal axis; a cargo area supported on the rearward frame portionof the frame assembly; a powertrain assembly supported on the rearwardframe portion of the frame assembly and including an engine and atransmission operably coupled to at least one of the front and rearground-engaging members; and a heat exchanger fluidly coupled to theengine and positioned at a portion of the cargo area adjacent the atleast one rear ground-engaging member.
 14. The vehicle of claim 13,further comprising a housing configured to include the heat exchanger, afirst air intake fluidly coupled to the engine, and a second air intakefluidly coupled to the transmission, and the housing is positioned abovethe at least one rear ground-engaging member.
 15. The vehicle of claim14, wherein the cargo area extends laterally between a first lateralside and a second lateral side and includes a generally continuous floorportion extending between the first and second lateral sides andconfigured to receive cargo thereon, and the heat exchanger and thefirst and second air intakes are laterally spaced apart from thegenerally continuous floor portion.
 16. The vehicle of claim 14, furthercomprising a seating area supported by the frame assembly, and at leasta portion of the housing is positioned laterally outward of the seatingarea.
 17. The vehicle of claim 14, wherein the housing is removablycoupled to a portion of the cargo area, and the housing includes a firstvent configured to receive air into the housing and a second ventconfigured to expel air from the housing, and the second vent isconfigured to expel air in a rearward direction from the housing. 18.The vehicle of claim 13, wherein the heat exchanger is angled relativeto the longitudinal axis.
 19. The vehicle of claim 13, wherein the heatexchanger is positioned adjacent and above the at least one rearground-engaging member.
 20. The vehicle of claim 13, wherein the heatexchanger is positioned at the rearward frame portion.